Vertically adjustable furniture



Oct. 29, 1957 .1. w. CHANEY VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE FURNITURE 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 8, 1955 W51. TE/e fmq/vsy,

Oct. 29, 1957 J. w. CHANEY vzancmx ADJUSTABLE FURNITURE 1 2 Sheets-Sheet2 Filed Aug. 8, 1955 INVENTOR. TEE O-lH/VEM fie. .52

United States Patent VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE FURNITURE John Waiter Chaney,Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Interstate Engineering Corporation, ElSegundo, Calif., a corporation of California Application August 8, 1955,Serial No. 526,880

Claims. (Cl. 311-39) This invention relates to improved verticallyadjustable units of furniture, such as tables, desks, and chairs, whichin certain respects are especially adapted for use as adjustable heightschoolroom furniture.

A major object of the invention is to provide a unit of this type whichis adapted to be very easily adjusted between different heightconditions, and to be very positively and rigidly retained in any ofthose different conditions, typically .to allow ready adjustment for useby different size students in a schoolroom. At the same time, theadjusting parts are extremely simple and inexpensive, and yetpermanently reliable. Further features of the invention have to do withthe formation of the vertically movable portion of such a device, in amanner such that it has maximum rigidity and strength.

structurally, a unit embodying the invention includes one or more legassemblies each of which comprises a pair of upper and lowertelescopically adjustable sections. An outer one of these sections isessentially tubu-. lar, and carries a holding element which is adaptedto be tightened by an adjusting screw against a sideof the innersection. This holding element is preferably .retained against rotationwith the screw as the screw is adjusted, to thus avoid damaging thesurface of the inner section by such rotation. Preferably, the holdingelement has a non-planar force applying surface whichengages andconforms essentially to an outer surface of the inner section, and whichby virtue of such engagement, acts to retain the element againstrotation with the screw. The screw may be movably contained within asmall tubular projection extending laterally from the outer section ofthe leg assembly.

To enable the holding element to most effectively retain the legsections in their different adjusted positions, the leg sections aredesirably of a non-circular cross sectional configuration, and havecorner positions extending vertically along one of their sides, with theholding element being located at an opposite side of the leg to urge thetwo corner portions tightly together. Also, the leg sections may haveadditional corner portions at the location of the holding elementitself, with the latter being shaped to engage and conform with thecorner of the inner section. In order to allow for the desired cornerson the leg sections, both sections of each leg are desirably ofessentially square transverse or horizontal section, so that tighteningof the holding element against one corner of the square inner sectionwill urge an opposite corner tightly against or into a corner of theouter section. A very positive double wedging action is thus attained,which rigidly holds the inner section against any lateral or othermovement relative to the outer section.

An additional feature of the invention resides in the provision of anadjustable structure including, in combination, first means for rigidlylocking two telescopic leg sections in an adjusted position, togetherwith additional means for frictionally holding the sections againstrelative movement even when the locking means are released, but adapted.to be overcome relatively easily to adjust the leg. When the lockingmeans in such an arrangement are released, the sections may be manuallyadjusted to a desired condition and will frictionally remain in thatcondition until the locking means can be tightened. The locking meansmay be the above discussed holding element and screw, while thefrictional holding means may be formed by stamping out one or moreportions of the wall of one of the leg sections (prefera'bly the innersection) to form fingers for fn'ctionally engaging the inner surface ofthe other section. Preferably, two such fingers are formed at twoadjacent sides of the previously discussed square leg sections.

In order to limit relative vertical adjustment of the leg sections at apoint short of complete separation of the sections, the two sections maybe provided with a pair of interengageable stop shoulders one of whichmay take the form of a leaf spring carried at a side of one of thesections (desirably the inner section) with this spring beingdeflectible to a released position by insertion of a tool through anaperture in the wall of the outer section. Where two leg assemblies areprovided in a table structure, the upper sections of the leg assembliesmay be rigidly interconnected by a frame member extending horizontallyat a location spaced beneath the table or desk top. One or more bookcompartments may then be mounted vertically between the frame member andthe top. a

The above and other features and objects of the present invention willbe better understood from the following detailed description of thetypical embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a two-student schoolroom desk embodyingthe invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of the Fig. 1 desk;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section taken primarily on line 3-3 atFig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a further enlarged horizontal section through one of the legassemblies taken on line 44 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken on line 55 ofFig. 4;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary exploded perspective view of one ofthe leg assemblies;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section through the basemember of one of the leg assemblies, and

Fig. 8 is a greatly enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the endportions of the two upper and lower telescopic sections of one of theleg assemblies.

The two-student schoolroom desk illustrated in the drawings includes anupper horizontal top panel It) typically of hollow construction, and apair of spaced vertically extending and vertically adjustable legassemblies 11 for supporting the top. At its underside, top 19 carries apair of book compartments 12.

Each of the vertically adjustable leg assemblies 11 includes twovertically extending tubular telescopically inner fitting sections 13and 14, the latter of which is slidably received about section 13, andis attached to the table top in a manner to be discussed at a laterpoint. The lower and inner section 13 of each leg assembly is connectedto a horizontal elongated base member 15, which rests on a suitablefloor surface 16. These base portions 15 'of the two leg assembliesareparallel and preferably extend directly transversely of the length ofthe desk. Bases 15 may be hollow at their underside, being formed ofsuitably deformed sheet metal, with the lower end of each leg section 13extending downwardly through an opening 16 in the upper side of the basemember, and through an opening 17 in a horizontal piece of metal iswelded into the hollow base member. Leg section 13 is then desirablywelded to the base memberat 19 and 20.

At the ends of base members which are nearest the student side of thedesk, the two base members rigidly carry a pair of feet or glides 21,which may be cup-shaped pieces of sheet metal suitably welded -or brazedto the base members. At the opposite ends of base members 15, thesemembers carry a pair of adjustable foot units 22, having lower discportions 23 carried by upwardly projecting screw portions 24 which arethreadedly and adjustably connected into openings in a pair of plates 25welded to the interior of the-base members. Each disc 23 may carry ahigh friction cover member 26, which is typically formed of rubber andis adapted to cover the underside of disc 23 and extend upwardly andthen inwardly about its periphery to retain member 26 on the disc.Members 26 retain the desk against movement along the floor surfaceunless the two adjustable feet are lifted off of that surface. The upperend of each screw member 24 is upset or otherwise enlarged above member25, to prevent complete removal of the vertically adjustable foot member2.2 from base member 15.

As best seen in Fig. 4, the two telescopically received sections 13 and14 of each leg assembly 11 are of closely similar square transverse orhorizontal section. The inner section 13 is only slightly smaller thanthe interior of the outer section 14, to allow for the desired relativevertical adjustment of the two sections. The upper section 14 of eachleg assembly is welded to the underside of a horizontal bracket plate27, which is in turn rigidly attached to the underside of top 10 by anumber of screws 28 extending upwardly through openings in plate 27 andconnected into the wood of the table top. The connection between eachbracket plate 27 and the associated leg section 14 is reinforced by atubular rigid frame member 29, which is welded at its opposite ends 30to the underside of bracket plate 27, and which extends downwardly asshown in the drawings between those ends to be welded at an intermediatelocation 31 to an outer side of the associated leg section 14. At alocation spaced beneath the desk top 10, a straight rigid tubular framemember 32 extends horizontally between the two leg sections 14, thisframe member 32 being rigidly attached at its opposite ends to the innersides of leg sections 14, as by welding 33. The two book compartments 12may be formed of sheet metal deformed to the illustrated shape, andattached along its periphery to the underside of the table top by screws34. At the student side of the desk, the book compartments 12 of coursehave openings 35 through which a student has access to the interior ofthe book compartments. Frame member 32 extends across the underside ofthe two book compartments.

Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 8 illustrate the unique apparatus which is providedfor maintaining the leg assemblies in any desired adjusted condition,and for preventing unwanted complete separation of the two telescopicsections of either leg assembly. For locking the section 14 in anydesired vertical position relative to section 13, there is provided anelement 36 which is tightenable laterally against a corner of innersection 13 by means of a screw 37 which is actuable by a wrench, screwdriver, or other tool receivable within a non-circular recess 38 in thescrew. Parts 36 and 37 are contained within a tubular or cylindricalhollow projection 39, whose axis preferably extends directlyhorizontally and directly diagonally with respect to the square legsections 13 and 14. Tubular projection 39 is connected into an openingin upper leg section 14 near its lower end, as by welding or brazing at40. Element 36 has a cylindrical peripheral surface 41 of a diameterslightly less than the internal diameter of tubular projection 39, sothat element 36 is effectively guided for horizontal sliding movementwithin projection 39. Screw 37 threadedly engages internal threads 42formed within the outer portion of projection 39, so that the screw maytighten element 36 toward and away from leg section 13. Threads 42preferably extend radially inwardly beyond the diameter of element 36,to thus retain element 36 within projection 39 even though screw 37 maybe removed.

At its inner end, element 36 has two perpendicular vertically extendingsurfaces 43, which form a V-shaped notch or recess conformingsubstantially exactly to the engaged corner portion of inner leg section13. Thus, tightening of screw 37 inwardly against element 36 acts totighten the latter against one corner. of leg section 13, to in turntighten the opposite corner 44 of leg section 13 against the outer legsection 14. This double wedging arrangement acts to very tightly securethe two sections 13 and 14 in any desired adjusted positions, with theleg sections being released for relative vertical adjustment byloosening of screw 37. Also, the shaping of element 36 to conform to theengaged corner of leg section 13 prevents marring of the outer surfaceof leg section '13 such as would result if screw 37 directly engaged theleg section. More particularly, the conformance of element 36 to thecorner of the leg section prevents marring both because it results inengagement of element 36 with the leg section over an extended area, andbecause it prevents rotation of element 36 with screw 37 and relative tothe engaged leg section.

Even when screws 37 and elements 36 are loosened, it is desirable thatthe leg sections 13 and 14 be frictionably held in the particularrelative positions to which they are set, to facilitate maintenance ofthe leg sections in those positions while screws 37 are being tightened.For this purpose, the wall of each inner leg section 13 islongitudinally slit and deformed to form a pair of resilient fingers 45for frictionally engaging the inner surface of leg section'14. Inparticular, there are formed on two adjacent sides of leg sections 13(and near a corner 46), two pairs of parallel slits 47 extendingdirectly downwardly at spaced locations from the upper edge of legsection 13. The two fingers 45 are then the portions of the walls ofsection 13 which are between the two pairs of slits 45. These fingers 45are of course integral with the wall of section 13 at their lower ends,and are deformed laterally outwardly to frictionally engage the twoadjacent sides of upper leg section 14. These fingers 45 are somewhatresilient, and resiliently bear outwardly against section 14, to thusafford the desired frictional means for retaining sections 13 and 14 inany set position. This frictional retaining force is sufficiently greatto hold the top in any adjusted position in spite of the tendency of thetop to move downwardly by virtue of its weight, and yet the frictionalforce is sufficiently small that a person may easily overcome that forceto adjust sections 14 and the top upwardly and downwardly relative tosections 13, the sections then being retained frictionally in their setpositions until the operator has the opportunity to tighten screws 37for positively locking the leg assemblies in that position.

At a side opposite one of the fingers 45, the side wall of'each legsection 13 may carry a leaf spring 48, which is suitably attached nearits upper end to the leg section, as by welding at 148, and whose lowerend 49 normally tends to project angularly outwardly (see Fig. 5) toform. a transverse shoulder adapted to engage a transverse shoulder 50on outer leg section 14, for positively limiting its upward movementrelative to section 13. Shoulder 50 on section 14 is formed by cuttingthe side wall of section 14 in a horizontal plane at the location ofshoulder 50, and then deforming outwardly the material of the side wallwhich is above the cut. The upwardly facing edge formed by the out thenforms the desired shoulder 50.

When section 14 is moved downwardly, finger 48 is deflected inwardly bythe side wall of section 14, and remains in an inwardly deflectedposition until section 14 is again raised to a position in which itsportion 49 is opposite portion 53 of section 14. The outwardlydeflectedportion 53 of section 14, and shoulder 50 on section 14,vareboth of a width slightly greater than finger '48; Extending upwardlyfrom thelower edge 54 of outwardly deflected portion 53 of section 14,this portion 53 contains an aperture 55, through which a screw driver orother tool may be inserted against portion 49 of element 48, to pushthat element inwardly (to the right as seen in Fig. 5), to therebyrelease element 48 and allow complete upward separation of leg section14 from section 13. Each of the sections 13 of the two leg assembliesmay have horizontal markings or graduations 56 at spaced locations alongits outer side, so that the positioning of the lower edge of section 14relative to these markings indicates the height of the table top(typically in inches).

To now describe the manner of use of the illustrated desk, this desk hasthe distinct advantage of being adjustable within a sufliciently widerange to allow its use in classrooms for any age of student, fromkindergarten to college. In order to adjust the table, it is necessarymerely to loosen the two screws 38, and then raise or lower each of theleg sections 14 relative to the associated section 13, finallytightening screws 37 to permanently retain sections 14 in their adjustedpositions. During the adjusting operation, sections 14 are frictionallyheld in any adjusted position relative to sections 13 by frictionalengagement of fingers 45 with sections 14. Also, element 48 positivelyprevents upward movement of sections 14 beyond a desired range andcompletely away from sections 13 unless element 48 is purposely pressedinwardly by a tool extending through aperture 55 to allow such completeseparation.

The interconnection of upper leg sections 14 by horizontal frame member32 spaced beneath the table top results in a very rigid desk structurewhich is strong and rigid in any adjusted position of the legassemblies. Also, the frame members 29 interconnecting brackets 27 andleg sections 14 add to the rigidity of the overall unit. Adjustable feet22 allow for slight adjustment of the floor engaging portions of thedesk, to compensate for any irregularities in the floor surface.Further, the provision of rubber or other high friction covers 26 onunits 22 serves to hold the desk in any set position on the floorsurface unless a user purposely lifts the edge 57 to raise units 22 offof the floor surface, in which case the entire desk may be easily slidto a new position on the floor surface by virtue of the small amount offriction offered by low friction glides 21.

I claim:

1. A vertically adjustable furniture piece comprising an upper memberhaving a generally horizontal support surface, and a verticallyextending leg assembly supporting said member, said leg assemblyincluding a pair of upper and lower telescopically adjustableessentially tubular sections an outer one of which is movably disposedabout the second and inner section, means for releasably retaining saidsections in any of different relative positions, one of said sectionshaving a portion of its side wall cut to form a transverse edge in saidwall, and means on the other section engageable with said edge toprevent unwanted complete separation of said sections.

2. A vertically adjustable furniture piece comprising an upper memberhaving a generally horizontal support surface, and a verticallyextending leg assembly supporting said member, said leg assemblyincluding a pair of upper and lower telescopically adjustableessentially tubular sections an outer one of which is movably disposedabout the second and inner section, means for releasably retaining saidsections in any of different relative positions, said outer sectionhaving a portion of its side wall cut and deformed away from the innersection to leave a transverse edge in said wall, the other sectionincluding a spring finger yieldingly bearing laterally against said onesection and engageable with said edge to prevent unwanted completeseparation of said sections, said deformed portion of the side wall ofsaid outer section containing an aperture through which a tool may exertinward force against said spring finger to deflect it inwardly to aposition for passing said edge and allowing said complete separation ofthe sections.

3. A vertically adjustable furniture piece comprising an upper memberhaving an upwardly facing support surface, and a vertically adjustable.leg assembly supporting said member, said leg assembly including a pairof upper and lower elongated essentially vertically extendingtelescopically adjustable sections an outer one of which is essentiallytubular and disposed about the second and inner section, a clampingelement movably carried by said outer section :at one side of said innersection and tightenable laterally inwardly against said one side of saidinner section with resultant tightening of the opposite side of theinner section against the wall of said outer section, and a screwthreaded tightening part carried by said outer section for threadedadjustment generally transversely of the outer section at a location totighten said clamping element against the inner section, said clampingelement and said inner section having engaging clamping faces one ofwhich contains a recess within which the other nests in any of differentrelative vertical settings of the two sections to confine the innersection against lateral movement in any direction at said one side ofthe sections when said clamping element is tightened, and said twosections having interengaging surfaces at said opposite side of thesections one of which contains a recess within which the other nests inany of different relative vertical settings of the sections to confinethe inner section against lateral movement at said oppo site side of thesections.

4. A vertically adjustable furniture piece as recited in claim 3, inwhich said inner and outer sections are of essentially similar andessentially square horizontal section, said clamping element and saidtightening part being carried at a first corner of said square outersection and being tightenable against a corresponding corner of theinner section with resultant tightening of a pair of opposite corners ofthe sections together, said first mentioned recess being an essentiallyright angle recess formed in said clamping element and receiving andpositioning said corresponding corner of the inner section.

5. A vertically adjustable furniture piece comprising an upper memberhaving an upwardly facing support surface, and a vertically adjustableleg assembly supporting said member, said leg assembly including a pairof upper and lower elongated essentially vertically extendingtelescopically adjustable sections an outer one of which is essentiallytubular and disposed about the second and inner section, a projectioncarried by said outer section and extending laterally outwardlytherefrom, there being a passage extending laterally outwardly fromwithin said outer section and through said projection to the outside ofthe outer section, a clamping element movably carried by said outersection at one side of said inner section and tightenable laterallyinwardly against said one side of said inner section with resultanttightening of the opposite side of the inner section against the wall ofsaid outer section, said clamping element being at least partiallyreceived in said passage and being movable therein toward and away fromsaid inner section, and a screw threaded tightening part carried by saidprojection for threaded adjustment laterally toward and away from theinner section at a location to tighten said clamping element against theinner section, said clamping element having an inner face containing arecess within which said inner section nests in any of differentrelative vertical settings of the two sections to confine the innersection against lateral movement in any direction at said one side ofthe sections when said clamping element is tightened, and the wall ofsaid outer section forming a recess at said opposite side of thesections within which said inner section nests in any of differentReferences Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS LehmanJuly 26, 1910 8 Bush' May 8, 1917 Meyer Nov. 20, 1917 Brown Apr. 21,1931 Morgan et a1. Mar. 7, 1950 White Apr. 3, 1951 White Mar. 2, 1954

